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Monday, January 04, 2016

Books Read in 2015

I don't know where I found the time or maybe I was just reading easy books, but I sure read a lot of books last year. Here's what I read and what I thought about them.

1. "Unbroken" by Lauren Hillenbrand
Such a fantastic book. Detailed. Long. But after seeing the movie, I was glad I read the book. It filled in all the details that the movie left out. Highly recommend.

2. "MWF Seeking BFF" by Rachel Bertsche
Honestly, I don't love reading non-fiction. Funny, since the first two books on this list are non-fiction. This book was about a married woman who moves to a new town and needs/wants to make new friends. She sets out on a quest to go on a new friend date once a week for a year. As a stay-at-home mom I should probably take some advice from this book and try harder to make friends. I'll think about it.

3. "American Sniper" by Chris Kyle
Ugh. I know everyone was high on this book and movie but I have to admit, I really disliked it. It was technical; it was stream of conscious; and it felt unintelligent. I skipped the movie after reading the book. (Number three of non-fiction on this list.)

4. "Yes Please" by Amy Poehler
Ooooh, Amy's raunchy! Funny, fast read. (Number four non-fiction. Maybe I should take back my statement that I don't like reading non-fiction.)

5. "Everything I Never Told You" by Celeste Ng
Oh man. This book was fantastic. Go read it. You won't be disappointed. It's about a girl who dies (in the first couple of pages - not giving anything anyway) and figuring out what happened to her. Fan-flipping-tastic.

6. "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker
It's important to read the classics, or at least what Oprah deems a classic, right? Wish I had skipped this. I did not like it.

7. "Mosquitoland" by David Arnold
I do love a good teenage book. This was good. I don't remember exactly what it was about, but it was good.

8. "Once a Runner" by John L. Parker, Jr.
I read a lot of books about running. This was fiction. It was alright. Not my favorite but it didn't completely suck like some on this list either.

9. "The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run Long Distances" by The Oatmeal
Quick read. Not really a book. More of a comic strip book. Laugh out loud funny if you're a runner and you totally get what he's talking about.

10. "Girls in White Dresses" by Jennifer Close
I should really write a blurb about each book after reading them. I have ZERO recollection of this book - something about a married friend, an engaged friend, a dating friend, and a single friend? Obviously it wasn't great if I can't remember anything about it.

11. "The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry" by Gabrielle Zevin
A cute little book about an angry windowed man who takes on the responsibility of being a parent after a child is left in his book store. There's a little bit of mystery to this book too. I liked this one.

12. "Paper Towns" by John Greene
Pass.

13. "Still Alice" by Lisa Genova
I like to read books that have been made into movies. This was fantastic although scared the shit out of me. I am such a hypochondriac. I hope I never get Alzheimer's.

14. "Why Not Me?" by Mindy Kaling
I love Mindy Kaling. She is so funny. I could hear her voice in every sentence of this book. Fun, short read.

15. "Fast Girl: A Life Spent Running From Madness" by Suzy Favor Hamilton
I totally remember when the story broke that Suzy Favor Hamilton was working as a high priced call girl in Vegas. And I remember thinking, what the hell would make her do that? This books gives me the answers. Although I have to admit, I felt gross reading this book. It was a little bit like reading porn. Ick! It's not exactly well written, but an interesting book that sucks you in.

And that's it. What did you read in 2015 that I should pick up this year?

2 comments:

4&14 are on my list to read. I mostly read non-fiction, and I liked Unbroken. Need to pull together a list of what I read last year. Not sure I'd remember more about some titles than you did on your list, haha.

I also really liked Everything I Never Told You. I'd read Still Alice several years ago and it terrified me, too, as Alzheimer's gallops through our family on both sides. Living the dream, for sure. Not. Another beautifully written one if you don't mind a slightly longer read is All the Light We Cannot See. I thought it was enchanting. You don't do sci-fi, right? I'd recommend Hyperion if you want to give it a try as I'm on the 4th of the series, haha. It's older so not long on the waiting list from the library. ;) I'm going to start one I saw on Dooce. It's called Between the World and Me. I'll let you know what I think. Love you! Thanks for the rundown!